Through Susan's Eyes
by Dreams and Wishes
Summary: A chance encounter with a mysterious centaur gives the new Queen a bit more confidence. Oneshot.


My fingertips lightly brushed upon the gold and silver leaves of my crown, as though to see if it was still there. Quite honestly, I was still in a state of shock. Jadis was gone. We had actually won the battle. And now, four British schoolchildren were sitting upon thrones in a world that nobody even knew existed. It sounded like pure lunacy.

But here I was. And it felt like I was home, in a place where I had always belonged. Before falling through the wardrobe, I'd never known what it felt like to hold a bow and arrow, or be anything more than a helpless girl. While I was certainly trying to appear strong for my mother and siblings, it was a hard façade to upkeep.

"Excuse me, miss." A male voice suddenly broke my thoughts as I realized that I had wandered away from the rest of the party and out onto the balcony overlooking the lake. "I think that you dropped this.."

I looked up to find a male centaur standing beside me, holding up a small ring with an emerald on it. Glancing down at my left hand, I quickly noticed that my own ring was no longer safely on my finger. It must have fallen off due to all the excitement, most likely. And I was lucky that someone had found it- it had been a gift from my father, and I don't know what I would have done if I'd suddenly saw that it was missing.

"Yes, it is." I replied politely, taking it from his open palm and quickly placing it back on my finger. "Thank you." A few moments of silence passed between us, and I was surprised when he didn't depart. For some odd reason, he just moved closer and came to rest his elbows upon the balcony banister. I followed suit, but only after tucking the annoying long sleeves of my coronation gown behind me so I didn't get them dirty.

"Why are you out here instead of inside enjoying the party, Little Queen?" He questioned, his deep voice once again shaking the silence. I just shook my head slowly. It was still hard for me to believe that any of this was real, any of this at all. How could I be a queen? I was hardly even old enough to be able to tell Lucy and Edmond what to do, let alone a whole kingdom.

"I…just don't feel like it." I muttered, my hand once again straying up to my crown and flitting by my neatly french-braided hair. "It doesn't feel right." And it really didn't. Everything that had happened so far was just done out of the desire to get home alive, and now we had suddenly made the choice to stay. How could the creatures of Narnia have faith in us? I didn't even have faith in us.

"You saved us from the White Witch." He stated in a very sincere tone. "And if you could do what none of us could, then there is no reason why you shouldn't rule. Even Aslan himself trusts you, and it's far from easy to earn the trust of that lion. By the way… my name is Elatus. It's a pleasure to meet you, Queen, despite the doubts you seem to be having."

I now took out the time to really take a good look at him. Strong, broad-shoulder and dark haired, he looked very much like the centaur who had fought beside Peter. A brother or a cousin, perhaps. Either way, I was quick to discover that he was quite handsome, at least by my standards.

"I didn't do it alone." I protested, gesturing over to where my three siblings were having a deep discussion with a pair of leopards. "Elatus. I'll have to remember that. I'd tell you my name, but I'm sure that you already know it by now.

"Of course." He replied with a chuckle. "Queen Susan the Gentle. It would be shameful of me if I were to forget the name of my new queen. After all, Aslan always says that once a king or queen of Narnia, always a king or queen of Narnia."

"I just don't see how I can do it.." I said, glancing out over the railing and into the rapidly setting sun. "I'm only a child. Back in my own world, I'm not even old enough to do much of anything, or at least anything that's halfway interesting. I don't even know if I believe in all of this! Couldn't it just all be some wild dream or a fantasy?"

"But it isn't." He said, quietly reaching down and cupping my chin in one of his calloused hands. "You're here, aren't you? And I'm touching you, plain as anything. That crown on your head is just as real as my hand upon your chin, just as real as the rich fabric that covers your body, just as real as the sunset off in the distance. Everything is real, if you can open up your eyes and see it."

At first, I simply stared at him. His eyes were so big and brown, like nothing I'd ever seen before in my life. Nothing that was human, most certainly. And then… I began to understand what he was saying. I was in Narnia because I fell through a magical wardrobe, but it was so much more than that one thing.

I had helped the creatures of a land that I previously didn't even know existed. I'd become more than just Susan Pevensie. In what must have been no more than a few seconds back in England, I had become a Queen. My thoughts were more than that of a simple schoolgirl now; they were the dreams of a ruler.

Elatus's hand was there, my crown was there, my dress was there, and the sunset was there. It was all there, because I believed that it was there. The sky had darkened considerably during our talk, giving way to some of the most magnificent stars that I'd ever seen in my entire life. And it was all there because I chose to see it.

"Thank you." I whispered, reaching up and placing my hand upon his shoulder. I almost had to stand on my tip-toes to do this, but somehow I managed. And, in that brief instant, I thought I saw a smile cross his face.

I didn't even notice as Peter came up behind me and gently guided me back inside, though I do recall the exact moment that Elatus's hand left my skin. A part of me died inside, as though that connection was the most important one I'd ever make in my life. The whole world seemed to be in color now, rather than in black-and-white like before.

"Are you alright, Susan?" Peter inquired, slowly leading me to a table where Edmond and Lucy were already busy eating. "You look… different."

"I'm fine." I replied, sitting down at the table beside Lucy. "Do you know that centaur? Elatus? He looks so very much like one of the centaurs who fought with you against the witch, Peter." I watched as my brother craned his neck, trying to see out onto the balcony. I saw the look of confusion on his face, though I didn't know why it was there.

"Su… there isn't anyone standing out there." He said gently. "And when I came out there to find you, you were completely alone."


End file.
